


Call Me Home

by minute0fdecay



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Death Threats, Fake AH Crew, Fake Character Death, First Time, Forced Hiding, GTA AU, Gang Violence, Geographical Isolation, Grief/Mourning, Hand Jobs, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-27
Updated: 2015-01-28
Packaged: 2018-03-09 06:10:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3239222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minute0fdecay/pseuds/minute0fdecay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I can’t tell you where I am but I am safe. I can’t tell you what’s happened in case this falls into the wrong hands. I am alive and well and in hiding. You can’t show the others this letter. I don’t want them acting irrationally when given this information. I know you are calm and level-headed and expect that you will continue to behave appropriately."</p><p>GTA / Fake AH Crew AU!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was the consensus in Los Santos that letter-writing was a dead art form. No one wrote letters when you had a 24/7 social media presence. Even phonecalls and texts were becoming obsolete. But for Ray, letter-writing kept him sane. The cops never checked the mail as – well – no one used the mail apart from for parcel deliveries and utility bills. But they checked your social media. Your online activity. Ray was pretty sure he had a tracer on him, somehow. Not that if he used his Lifeinvader to get in touch with Ryan was of any use – he’d deleted his account once he’d been forced to split from the rest of the crew.

It had been a perfectly planned heist gone wrong. The heist itself – in the sense of getting the money with maximum stealth and minimum shooting – had gone as planned, but the getaway had been disastrous. Turned out that one of the new guys Geoff had taken under his wing was a double agent of sorts, secretly loyal to a rival gang who wanted the Fake AH Crew off the scene, especially the masked man who mowed down any opposition. The Fake AH Crew were basically untouchable because of him. He had the stealth and deadliness of a black mamba, guised as an ordinary, seemingly harmless grass snake.

They’d managed to isolate Ryan on the getaway who had planned to go his own way to the eventual meet up point. The new kid had managed to disarm Ryan before the rest of his crew had rolled up on them, sights focussed on Ryan’s head, forcing him to choose between leaving his crew, his family and his livelihood or death.

Ryan chose to leave Los Santos and the rest of the Crew, after he hadn’t showed up for three days after the heist, presumed him dead.

They never found the body, of course, because there wasn’t a body to be found. They’d buried some of Ryan’s jackets. They needed closure. They needed to bury something. They needed some certainty. They could never be sure if Ryan was still alive, but it was better to presume and believe in his death than to spend hours worrying over what could have happened, what he could be doing.

They were all happy – well, not happy – but willing to accept that. Of course they all still had hope that Ryan was alive somewhere. Ray especially. Before Ryan left, they were in the baby steps of a dangerous relationship. It was essentially an office relationship, except in this office there was a lot more murder and drugs and guns.

It had been a few months before Ray got the first letter.

_Ray_

_I can’t tell you where I am but I am safe. I can’t tell you what’s happened in case this falls into the wrong hands. I am alive and well and in hiding. You can’t show the others this letter. I don’t want them acting irrationally when given this information. I know you are calm and level-headed and expect that you will continue to behave appropriately._

_I miss you very much and I hope I can come home to you soon. Keep yourself safe for me._

_Should you need to reply to me, pizza delivery for namnworb?_

_Yours_

_HRHTMK_

_Xx_

Ray knew it had been a letter from Ryan from the handwriting itself, but the HRHTMK had sealed it for him. Ray had once jokingly called Ryan “The Mad King” and since then he had demanded to be called His Royal Highness The Mad King thank-you-very-much. He’d used it maybe once. It was a joke they had between the two of them, and they didn’t often have time to be alone together.

As excited and thrilled as he was to see that Ryan was still alive, he desperately wanted to tell the rest of the guys that Ryan was okay and that he was in touch with him but he couldn’t. Ryan had told him not to and just the wording of the letter had placed the fear of God in him. He couldn’t risk any repercussions. Ryan was probably very wary of sending the letter in the first place. He couldn’t betray Ryan’s trust in him like that.

Ray had written out a response a few hours later after getting the letter and sure enough, the next day, late at night, the doorbell rang and Ray opened the door to a pizza delivery boy asking for namnworb. Ray had to be very alert. He needed to be the one to answer the door. He couldn’t let the others answer the door for that call. It would cause too much suspicion, too much panic. Jack would probably interrogate the kid after tying him to a chair, in a dark room lit by a single lamp while he sat on another chair in front of him but the wrong way around and Geoff chewed on a cigarette in the background looking bored. Maybe Ray had watched too much crime drama, but he could only imagine Gavin’s reaction if he was asked about “namnworb”. Confusion, mostly.

_HRHTMK_

_I hope this letter reaches you in good health. I am glad to hear you’re safe._

_I miss you too. I’ve taken the pillow from your bed. It’s incredibly cliché but it smells like you and it’s quite comforting. We buried your jackets. We never found a body._

_I’m amazed you remembered the address for the PO box. I can’t remember it myself._

_Come home soon_

_Ray_

_Xx_

_***  
_ Ryan had left Los Santos, yes, but he couldn’t stray too far. He wasn’t going to be pushed away, scared away, that easily. He settled in Cape Catfish, made himself at home in one of the little shacks and started a “new life” there. He changed his clothes (he started wearing those God-awful Hawaiian shirts he hated so much and often ridiculed Jack for wearing), dyed and cut his hair and would wear coloured contacts if he was heading to any sort of civilization to stock up on supplies. However, after a few weeks he decided it would be a much easier disguise to merely grow out his hair, grow a beard, but stick to the ridiculous clothes. Fugitives can’t be constantly buying hairdye, he thought to himself.

 He could afford the luxuries if he wanted but just in case there were eyes on his spending he furnished his shack with the basics and kept to only buying the essentials, splashing out occasionally on treats such as chocolate or ice-cream if he was feeling particularly lonely. His shack was littered with books (he remembered how nice life could be without the constant screaming of a television, the toxic glow of a smartphone) and he slept with a gun under his pillow. The other residents of Cape Catfish didn’t seem to mind his presence. For all they cared he was a civilian fleeing from the gaze of Big Brother, the 24/7 access to everything and everyone, in search of simpler, purer, life. In a sense, it was true.

He wished that he could bring Ray here. Ray would hate it, as Ryan had no TV and the only power outlets were used up by his kitchen appliances. But Ray would love the sunset. He’d love the walks. They could be a proper couple out here, lying on the beach holding hands and just talking. Maybe Ryan could take him fishing, if he learned how to fish himself.

***

_Ray,_

_I miss you more and more each day. I can’t wait to see you, to kiss your lips and hold your hands in mine again. I find myself longing for you on lonely nights but I have too much respect for your memory to dirty it._

_Hope you’re well and safe._

_Enjoy your pizza_

_HRHTMK xxx_

_***_

Ray and Ryan had been writing to each other for about a year. A letter every week and a half. Ray knew when to check the PO box that was open in a fake name for security’s sake. With every letter it got harder to hide it from the guys, who hadn’t attempted anything beyond a hold-up since Ryan’s “death”. They were still grieving and Ray felt awful for holding back information that they deserved to know so much. He had to pretend to mourn on the anniversary of Ryan’s departure and felt like a phoney, a liar and an absolute scumbag, as he forced tears from his eyes as he watched Michael and Gavin shed their tough exteriors to mourn over their dead-but-not-really friend. Ray had nearly cracked under the pressure, but the fear of consequences held him firmly in place, and he didn’t say a word.

***

_HRHTMK_

_Today we had your funeral anniversary. The guys are still broken up and my heart goes out to them. I feel bad for holding this information from them but I promise you that I will keep this to myself. But I implore you, come home soon not just for me but their minds at ease._

_R xxxx_

***

Ray didn’t like to admit, but he counted the days since Ryan disappeared. On the day of his 20-month-missing anniversary, Ray got a delivery at five o’clock in the morning. He’d never had a delivery this early. It had always been on the verge on midnight. Instantly, he was cautious. He kept a gun under his pillow, a habit he’d picked up from Ryan. He withdrew it and quietly slid from his bed. The rest of the guys were either asleep or out – but Ray never slept, or not during normal hours at least. No one else would have heard the doorbell.

He padded very slowly towards the door, on the balls of his feet, not allowing his heels to hit to floor. He usually stomped around like a baby elephant but was quite elegant when he put his mind to it.

He pressed himself up quietly against the door and looked out of the peep hole. He saw nothing but a fisheye view of the side of a man’s face. It wasn’t the pizza boy, but the face had a recognisable quality about it.

Very carefully, he undid the five locks on the door one by one, apart from the chain lock. He slid it a little to allow himself to view the person properly.

As he pulled the door open, he pointed his gun at the figure before revealing his face. He peered around the door as it opened a little more, to the extent the chain would allow it. Gun still trained on the head, he examined the man stood before him.

He was bearded. Not exactly a bushy beard but more than stubble. His hair was pulled back in a bun and therefore must have been quiet long. He wore a Hawaiian shirt with the few top buttons undone revealing a light dusting of chest hair and denim, ripped cropped shorts that showed off tan, strong legs.

“Vigilant. Just like I taught you. I’m impressed.

Ray froze and lowered his gun. He recognized that voice, he would recognize it anywhere.

“Ryan?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryan returns to Ray but can't stay - but has a plan for when he can come back again.

Ray stared at the man in front of him. He felt his heart beating in his chest, his breath caught in his throat as he took in the sight of Ryan stood before him, nearly two years since they’d last seen each other.

“I can’t stay for long,” Ryan whispered “but I can come back in a few weeks after I’ve got eyes here.”

Ray didn’t really listen to what Ryan had said before flinging his arms around Ryan’s neck. He felt Ryan’s face bury into his neck, a smile spreading across his lips as he held him tightly. Ray tried not to cry. He’d missed Ryan’s arms. He’d missed being wrapped up in them.

“I can’t believe you’re here.” He said quietly, as they drew away from each other. Ryan kept his hands on Ray’s shoulders, looking him up and down, a smile spreading on his face.

“You’ve not changed a bit.”

“I can’t say the same about you,” Ray laughed nervously. “I dig the beard and the whole beach-bum look, by the way.”

Ryan chuckled quietly. “Thanks. I might cut my hair though. This bun looks ridiculous,” he said, taking his hands off of Ray and adjusting his hair slightly. “I feel like I’m nineteen again.”

“Nah dude. Keep it. It’s hot.” Ray said, before realising what he’d said. They were still in the baby steps of a relationship despite being in a relationship for nearly two years. They’d kissed and let their hands roam, but that was about it. Ray had never said anything like that before, let alone to Ryan. Ryan blushed beneath the beard.

“Thank you,” he muttered quietly, smiling to himself. “I can’t stay for long but I had to see you. It was driving me nuts not being with you.”

It was Ray’s turn to blush like a schoolgirl.

“I’ll be back though. I’ve met some guys. I’m gonna get them to keep an eye out on this place so that I know that no one else has eyes here. I’ve done everything I can to keep off the radar but I’m not sure if the Rooster Crew have forgotten about me or not. That fucking Kerry kid, man. We shouldn’t have trusted him. I shouldn’t have trusted him. Jesus.”

“Hey, hey,” Ray said, running a hand along Ryan’s tanned arm, “none of us knew. None of us figured it out until it was too late. You can’t beat yourself up over it.”

The RC were the AH Crew’s biggest rivals. They were larger in number, had more contacts and due to the sheer number of members, could have one of them with their eyes on any part of the city at any one given time.

Ryan checked his watch. He looked up at Ray and pulled him in for a kiss. Ray had never kissed a bearded guy before. He rather liked it.

“I gotta go,” Ryan said, looking a little sad at the prospect of leaving Ray having only been with him for a few minutes “but I’ll keep sending you pizza. I’ll be back around this time soon. I’ll explain myself to you then, and to the guys.”

Ray nodded as he kissed Ryan one last time before he disappeared down the stairs.

Ray stood in the doorway for a while, waiting to see if Ryan was going to come back up, which he knew he wouldn’t, but he hoped anyway. After ten minutes of wistful thinking, he closed the door behind him and went back to his room, too happy to sleep. He picked up his 3DS and by the time he felt his eyelids getting heavy, the sun was peeking into his room through the curtains.

***

It was a month before Ryan came back, again, at five in the morning.

It was Ray to answer the door, Ray who let him into the apartment and Ray who set Ryan up on the sofa, his own room having been locked. Ray didn’t have access to the key.

“The FUCK?”

Everyone was woken up by Gavin’s confused yelling the next morning. He’d been the first one of them to get up and discover the apparent stranger sleeping on their sofa.

Standing up slowly, hands raised to show he was disarmed, he faced his friends, all of whom had guns trained on him. Ray stood, watching from a distance.

“Guys. Easy. It’s me.”

As they recognized Ryan’s dark and distinctive voice and lowered their weapons, putting them away. They stood in silence, dumbfounded by the presence of a man they’d assumed dead for nearly two years. Ryan slowly lowered his hands and stood before his crew. Geoff didn’t say anything before stepping forward to pull Ryan into a hug. It was genuine, it was a hug of relief, of happiness.

“It’s good to have you back, buddy.”

***

The reunion speech had been surprisingly relaxed and civilised for a bunch of thieves, fraudsters and murderers.

Jack had made everyone coffee (apart from Gavin, who drank tea “like a normal British person”) and they all sat down in the lounge in their pyjamas, eating breakfast and waking up while Ryan sat and explained the entire situation to them. How he’d been forced to leave the city, how he’d had to disguise himself for fear of being caught as he hadn’t _actually_ moved that far away, how he’d met some people through roundabout ways that were able to keep an eye on the building to make sure that his return would be safe and how, for the last year and a bit, he’d been in touch with Ray. At that point, all eyes turned to Ray who was curled up in an armchair, working his way through a bowl of cereal.

“You knew the whole time?” Michael asked. He sounded more than a little pissed off.

Ray nodded. “Yeah,” he said swallowing his cereal. “I wanted to tell you guys but I couldn’t compromise Ryan’s safety by telling you.”

Michael got to his feet. “So this whole time you’ve been putting on the weeping widow act when really you’ve known he was fine?”

“Michael, sit down,” Jack said quietly.

“Shut up, Jack. So on Ryan’s death anniversary, which I suppose means nothing now, you faked those tears. You faked sympathy for us, so basically you’ve just been acting this whole time?”

Ray refused to stand up to Michael, knowing that nothing would kick off if he didn’t rise to his level, physically or otherwise.

“I didn’t put on an act, Michael. I was still missing him. It tore me up inside knowing that he was still out there but not being able to tell you. It fucking sucked watching all of us as a group break down because of grief. On that day, when we went to visit his ‘grave’, seeing everyone so low and so broken was enough to bring me to tears. But I couldn’t tell you in case something happened to Ryan. I wasn’t being spiteful.”

“How do you know it was unsafe?” Michael yelled. “Were you after some moral high ground or something? Did you want something to hold over us?”

“I told him not to tell,” Ryan said, standing up to Michael. Ryan was taller than the other, and more physically imposing. “If you’ve got a problem with that, you talk to me about it, not Ray. He’s just doing what I told him to.”

Ryan crossed his muscular arms and Michael backed down.

“I’m just shocked, is all,” he mumbled.

“So,” Jack said as he got up to collect the empty plates and bowls. “Are you, uh, moving back in?”

“Not just yet,” Ryan said. “But I intend to. My only worry is those fuckin’ Roosters. If they see me back in town they’ll probably kill us all. This beard can only disguise me for so long before they notice some bum hanging out with you guys. So I have a plan. Shake ‘em up a bit.”

Geoff turned to Ryan, an interested look on his face. The Roosters had given Geoff some grief in the past, and Geoff jumped at any opportunity to get one up over his rivals.

“Go on.”

“We kidnap Burnie. The main man. Face of their operation. Send a few threats to the rest of em. Get em to leave me alone, and we’ll release Burnie. Something of that sort. I’ve not worked out the details but I think you know what I’m getting at.”

Geoff nodded as a smug smile appeared on his face. He pointed a tattooed finger at Ryan.

“I’m so glad you’re back, man.”

***

That night, Ryan and Ray were lying together in bed, Ryan’s arms wrapped around Ray, who was playing on his DS while engaging in lazy conversation with his partner. Ryan’s bare chest was pressed against Ray’s equally as bare back, this being the most physically intimate the two had been. Ryan tried to hide how happy and excited he was to be back, but he knew that Ray would be able to hear the echoes of his heartbeat against his back. Occasionally Ryan would kiss Ray’s shoulders and as he moved up to Ray’s neck, he would stop his game and gulp, and try not to let Ryan notice his sharp inhaling when his lips touched _that_ spot that he didn’t know he had until Ryan brushed it with his lips.

But Ryan noticed.

Ray felt excitement course through his veins as Ryan figured out what his body language was telling him, continuously kissing and sucking at that spot on his neck, making Ray squirm and arch his back. Ryan pressed his hand flat against Ray’s chest to hold him still, to bring him closer to Ryan.

Ryan chuckled quietly in Ray’s ear, causing a shiver to go down his spine.

“You like that, huh?” Ryan asked, his voice deeper than usual, each syllable causing a wave of arousal to wash over Ray. Ray nodded eagerly as he realised he could feel Ryan’s hardness pressed against him, aware that he was getting pretty hard himself as Ryan’s hand trailed down to cup Ray through his boxers.

“Y’know, I spent a lot of time on my own in Cape dreaming of you. Just thinking how good it would be when I got to see you again. Of course, I could have imagined, satisfied myself that way, but it didn’t seem right to do it without doing it to you first,” Ryan breathed into Ray’s ear. Ray had done the same. Been so tempted to jack off to Ryan and what they could do, but not really having anything to work with, had stopped himself from doing so.

Ray was embarrassingly close to climaxing as Ryan gently stroked Ray’s length through the material using a finger.

“I’ve waited so long to be with you, Ray. Too long to just do everything in one night.”

Ray gasped as Ryan tugged down his boxers and continued to stroke his length using his finger. He could feel Ryan’s dick pressed against his ass, and as Ryan wrapped his hand around Ray’s cock and pressed his lips to Ray’s sensitive spot on his neck, he gave a gentle tug, which was enough to send Ray over the edge. He moaned quietly as he came over Ryan’s hand and a little on himself. He bit his lip to stop himself making any more noise. A few minutes later he felt Ryan get up to get a towel that he had used a few hours ago to clean up. He was still quite obviously hard himself, but didn’t seem too bothered about it.

“Uh, want me to, um, finish you off?” Ray offered. He would have no idea what to do, but he felt it was polite to offer. Ryan smiled at him.

“Your turn tomorrow night. Tonight I just wanted to see you, to feel you… make you feel good.”

Ray blushed. “You certainly did that,” he said quietly.

Ryan kissed him gently on the lips as they got back into bed together, wrapped up in each other.

“Get some sleep, Ray.” Ryan said as he took the DS from Ray’s hands and put it on the floor beside him. “Those bags on your eyes are way bigger than when I last saw you.” He kissed his cheek. “I hope you don’t mind me sleeping next to you.”

“It’s lovely,” Ray said, smiling to himself.

“Great. Goodnight, Ray.” Ryan said, finding Ray’s hand and giving it a squeeze.

“G’night, Ryan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eheheheheeee
> 
> So I haven't decided yet if this is going to continue to the whole kidnapping Burnie plan, I may just leave it as a short-but-sweet Raywood thingy. But we'll see!  
> Thanks for the feedback and I look forward to hearing more from you guys <3

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo I was listening to Gunslinger by A7X a lot today and then this fic happened and I'd like to think that even though GTA Ryan is very scary and intimidating he loves the simple things like writing love letters. I would love to hear your feedback and I will probably be doing a follow up chapter, if not chapterss! <3


End file.
